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Enjoyable time at the show,

I visited a Fashion Show held at The Friary Shopping Centre in Guildford on the 16th of October, which was featuring the new fashions and trends.When I arrived at the Friary (at about 2.20) we firstly parked the car in a nearby car park. Being a Saturday- of course the car parks were quite busy however we luckily found a car-space situated directly opposite the centre. I didn't know what to expect from the fashion show and was apprehensive that I would be pleasantly surprised at the event. At first I was slightly concerned that due to the vast size of the centre- it may be difficult to find my way around and locate the fashion show. However, as we entered (from one of the several entrances) there were numerous flyers/ leaflets directing you to the main runway and therefore it was easily accessible. By now there were a few people standing by the runway- which was situated centrally between the Disney Store and a vacant shop which was used for the models and therefore was covered up. I noticed there was one staircase on the far left on the runway- which I assumed would be used for the arrival/ departure of the models. The runway was about 1 metre tall and stretched for over 50 m- and whilst the few minutes until show time commenced- the area became busier and the atmosphere filled with excitement. When the show started we were firstly introduced to the presenter- who told us about the several different fashions that we would be seeing. The show began with a Military fashion, and loud music was played (from the several speakers situated around the runway) and one-by-one 4 models walked out onto the runway- each representing a different outfit of the Military collection. The audience were kept captivated from the music, and the excitement in the atmosphere. The models walked in time with the music and each had an equal amount of stage time and the fact that each model smiled as they walked out- made the audience feel more warming to the models, and want to keep on watching. The first 4 models then went off stage and were replaced with 4 new models representing fashions from the Knit Wear collection. At this point a new song was played out, with a similar beat pattern, therefore again the models walked in time with the music. Also each model smiled as they walked down the runway. Throughout the event I stood in the audience at about half way down the runway- because this area was not as busy as the end of the runway, and therefore I was able to stand at the front. These events continued to happen for the next two collections, and we were introduced to the first and second set of models for the second time. The show ended with a finally- and all the models walked down the runway, clapping, whilst the audience cheered. Overall, I enjoyed the arts event very much and it was useful for me in the production of my own top. I was able to see the kinds of styles that were being used and I was able to see how the fashion designers had used certain textures and colours to obtain a specific result.

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A good shopping centre

The Friary shopping centre is the main shopping centre in the town of Guildford. Guildford is in Surrey, and is not far from Farnham.

The Friary has two main entrances from the street, one from the car park and another one from the bus station. There is 3 floors to the shopping centre which are accessible by lift, or escalator. The top floor is the food court, which has a wide choice of hot foods, including McDonalds, Spud-u-Like, Chinese food and much more. There is also public toilets situated on this level.

The other two floors are full of brilliant stores including Punkyfish, The Disney Store, Clintons Cards, TopShop, Meme 2 Bebe, GNC, HMV, Claires Accessories and Foot Locker. The centre is quite a decent size, leaning towards the large side, and there is definatley something for everyone in there. There is a choice of stores for clothing, for men, women and children, so you can be sure to find a great outfit for almost any occasion.

There are security guards regularly patrolling the shopping centre, so you can shop feeling safe. There is also constant CCTV recording for your safety too. The car park is a decent sized, multi-storey car park, that has plenty of space, although at times it seems a little too dark in there, even with car head lights on. It is a pay and display car park, and the prices are ok, nothing major expensive but not considered cheap either.

The centre is usually quite clean, as they have cleaners walking around at all times picking up litter, cleaning up spills and just generally making sure the place is clean and the floor is not slippery for shoppers walking through. There are many litter bins provided around the centre, so you can easily put your litter in the bin.

All in all, The Friary is a pretty good shopping centre, and I have had many a good shopping trip there with no hassles or problems, and I would happily shop there again.

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Useful, but busy

This multi-storey shopping centre stood on what was the site of a Friary, hence its name; however, its function has changed greatly. All sorts of shops are included here - fast food, cafés, clothing, music, DVDs et. c. However, like most of Guildford, the vast majority of the more than 60 shops are clothes shops (of all different varieties, from Ann Summers to BHS.). This is a Westfield shopping centre, and so has small toy cars for children to borrow to drive alongside their parents in. Access is good - both ecalators and lifts function here, so those in wheelchairs, or with buggies can easily get to all shops easily and without hassle. There are two sets of toilets; one on the ground floor and one on the top floor (there are 3 floors overall). Car parking is provided by the nearby Bedford Road car park, which is well sign-posted within Guildford. However, as a non-driver, I can't tell you the prices! My driving friends tell me there are usually plenty of spaces. In terms of busyness, it's not the best place to go if you just want to pop in for something, or to have a quiet wander round, as it's usually rather busy. But still, if you want a centre with quite a lot of shops, here's one.